Pete Hegseth Fast Facts
CNN Editorial Research
(CNN) — Here’s a look at the life of US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
Personal
Birth date: June 6, 1980
Birth place: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Birth name: Peter Brian Hegseth
Father: Brian Hegseth, basketball coach
Mother: Penelope “Penny” Hegseth, career coach
Marriages: Jennifer Rauchet (2019–present); Samantha Deering (2010-2018, divorced); Meredith Schwarz (2004-2009, divorced)
Children: with Jennifer Rauchet: Gwendolyn, Kenzie, Jackson and Luke (Kenzie, Jackson and Luke are Jennifer’s children from a previous relationship); with Samantha Deering: Gunner, Peter Boone and Rex
Education: Princeton University, B.A., 2003; Harvard University, M.P.P., 2013
Military service: Army National Guard, 2002-2021, Major
Religion: Christian
Other Facts
Has earned two Bronze Star Medals.
Authored five books.
After his stint at Vets for Freedom, Hegseth also led Concerned Veterans for America (CVA), another veteran advocacy nonprofit, for more than four years.
Hegseth has a history of supporting controversial policies, including using the US military to put down domestic riots, speaking in favor of enhanced interrogation methods such as waterboarding, pardoning US soldiers convicted of war crimes, targeting cultural institutions in drone strikes and banning women from combat roles.
Timeline
2007- 2012 – Vets for Freedom, executive director and later as officer.
2012 – Runs for Minnesota’s US Senate seat before dropping out after a rival candidate wins the Republican Party’s nomination.
2014 – Joins Fox News as a contributor.
2017-November 12, 2024 – Named co-host of “Fox & Friends Weekend.”
May 21, 2019 – CNN reports Hegseth privately encouraged US President Donald Trump to pardon some US service members accused of war crimes, according to a person familiar with the conversations.
January 2021 – Is removed from inauguration duty for US President Joe Biden as a National Guard member because of what he describes as a religious tattoo of a Jerusalem cross. Hegseth resigns from the military. On November 15, 2024, Reuters and The Associated Press report that Hegseth was flagged by a fellow servicemember as a possible “insider threat” due to a “Deus Vult” (Latin for “God wills it”) tattoo on his right arm, a symbol used by White nationalists.
November 12, 2024 – President-elect Trump announces Hegseth as his nomination for secretary of defense.
November 20, 2024 – According to a police report from the city attorney’s office of Monterey, California, a woman told police that Hegseth sexually assaulted her in his hotel room on October 8, 2017. In a statement released on November 21, 2024, Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine Pacioni says that her office declined to file charges against Hegseth in January 2018 because “no charges were supported by proof beyond a reasonable doubt.”
November 29, 2024 – The New York Times reports Hegseth’s mother, Penelope Hegseth, wrote Pete an email on April 30, 2018, accusing him of mistreating former wife Samantha Deering and other women. On the same day, Penelope Hegseth says in a phone interview with the New York Times that she regrets sending the email, arguing that her son is a changed man.
January 14, 2025 – A Senate panel conducts a confirmation hearing for Hegseth. Hegseth is questioned about excessive drinking allegations, sexual assault accusations and his shifting public view on women in military combat.
January 24, 2025 – In a 51-50 vote, the Senate confirms Hegseth to be the US defense secretary. Vice President JD Vance casts the tie-breaking vote.
January 25, 2025 – Is sworn in as the 29th US secretary of defense.
March 24, 2025 – The Atlantic editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg reports that he was accidentally added to a Signal group chat detailing operational plans and other likely highly classified information about US military strikes on Yemen. National security advisor Mike Waltz started the group thread that included Hegseth, Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. On March 26, 2025, The Atlantic publishes additional text messages from the group chat following the Trump administration and those in the group downplaying the sensitivity of the information.
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